Archive for
July 25th, 2011

Former NBA star Alonzo Mourning is being cited by police for leaving the scene of a traffic crash in Miami Beach last week.

The Florida Highway Patrol issued a report Monday saying Mourning is being issued a notice to appear in court for the second-degree misdemeanor of leaving the scene of an accident with property damage. Mourning was also issued a citation for failure to leave information at the scene.

It’s always nice to return to a place that’s comfortable. And generally, people find Boston comfortable as a city, and the Celtics winning ways a nice thing to be a part of.

And, players just like jobs. Those are nice, too.

Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe reports:

Marquis Daniels last played for the Celtics on Feb. 6, when he collapsed on the TD Garden floor after a what appeared to be normal collision with Orlando’s Gilbert Arenas. Daniels was taken off the court in a stretcher and declared out for the season with a spinal condition that required surgery.

After an injury-plagued 2009-10 season, Daniels was bouncing back with a solid year before the injury. He was traded to the Sacramento Kings for cash to clear a roster spot. But Bartelstein said he has always been open in returning to the Celtics.

The Celtics likely have one last championship run in them before it’s time to consider breaking up the team and sending a few guys into an old-age home.

After interviewing Rick Adelman and Don Nelson over the weekend, the Timberwolves intend to interview Larry Brown and possibly one or two others in this first phase to replace fired coach Kurt Rambis.

When the Wolves will interview Brown, who has coached teams to both NBA and NCAA titles, is uncertain because of a recent death in his family, according to a league source with knowledge of the team’s search.

If they do, they will have interviewed two coaches among the top six all time in NBA career victories. Nelson is No. 1 with 1,335. Brown is No. 6 with 1,098.

Count E’Twaun Moore among those NBA rookies who won’t be waiting for a lockout resolution.

As of today the Celtics rookie was close to signing a deal with one of a number of teams in Italy’s Serie A, according to agent Mark Bartlestein.

“We’re going through successful talks,” said the Chicago-based agent. “Nothing has been agreed to yet, but we’re talking to a couple of teams. Can we get a deal done? We think so.”

Bartlestein estimated that a deal should be completed by Tuesday for Moore, the Celtics’ second round draft choice, and the Purdue teammate of Celtics first round pick JaJuan Johnson.

Update: Sportando reports:

Cimberio Varese, via its president Cecco Vescovi, confirmed the agreement with E’Twuan Moore for the season 2011-12. The product of Purdue University was selected by Boston Celtics in the 2011 NBA Draft averaged more than 18ppg as senior in NCAA. Moore will have short NBA out in the contract to exercise when the lockout ends if he gets an offer from Celtics.

There are marketing opportunities to discuss and negotiations to be had over possible jersey sales that would almost certainly result in players getting a significant slice of the financial pie that they don’t in their agreement with the NBA (although some expect the NBA would challenge the players’ ability to sign such deals). There is a fact that seems to always be forgotten, too: playing overseas means not paying taxes. While there are taxes to be paid, several agents with experience doing international deals said they typically negotiate for the team to cover those payments as part of the contract.

So considering Williams’ salary with the Turkish team, Besiktas, has been reported as a one-year, $5 million deal, that’s the approximate equivalent to a $10 million NBA deal for the player who stands to lose $16.3 million if the entire season is lost because of the lockout. There won’t be enough jobs for the masses, but the players, their agents, and union representatives clearly hope the threat of losing elite players strikes some fear in the owners’ hearts.

Star-studded exhibition games like the two taking place in the Philippines this weekend are proving to be quite profitable as well, with one source with knowledge of the deals saying the Lakers’ Kobe Bryant, Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant and Chicago’s Derrick Rose are being paid more than $400,000 apiece for their weekend of work (reminder: tax-free). Worthwhile ventures like these are a less-explosive strategy on the labor front, though there is — as reported by Yahoo! Sports on Saturday — an impatient contingent of agents who is pushing for a more aggressive approach that involves the decertification of the union and subsequent antitrust lawsuits.

Yet despite the worst-case scenario fears of some agents that the league’s owners could be willing to lose two seasons to get the hard salary cap and monumental rollbacks they’re seeking, NBPA officials still appear to be more inclined to let the clock keep ticking and the pressure keep building.

Update: Game organizers deny reported figures. Interaksyon reports:

But MVP Sports Foundation executive director Chot Reyes denied the figures cited by Amick, hinting that the real numbers were much lower. “Every player had a different contract as well,” Reyes added.

While Reyes would not divulge the exact figures, he was earlier quoted as saying that the event cost “between expensive and very expensive.”

Bryant is estimated to make around $25 million from the Los Angeles Lakers this season, which would amount $300,000 per NBA game. The difference, though, is that Bryant’s earnings in the Philippines would be tax-free as opposed to his regular NBA salary.